2013-12-23

In celebration of the final season of the BCS, fans will be rewarded with more than their fair share of exciting college football to close out the 2013-14 season.

The bowl season began on Dec. 21 and will close on Jan. 6 when Auburn and Florida State square off in the BCS National Championship Game. While the title game figures to be a compelling matchup, there are several games in between then and now that will also entertain.

With so many bowl games in so short a time, it can be easy to lose track of the games. Below is a full table of viewing information, as well as a prediction as to what team will come out on top in each of the bowl games.

Bowl Game

Teams

Date/Time

TV 

Predicted Winner

Beef 'O' Brady's St. Petersburg

East Carolina vs. Ohio

Dec. 23 @ 2 p.m.

ESPN

East Carolina

Sheraton Hawaii

Boise St. vs. Oregon St.

Dec. 24 @ 8 p.m.

ESPN

Boise St.

Little Caesars Pizza

Pittsburgh vs. Bowling Green

Dec. 26 @ 6 p.m.

ESPN

Bowling Green

S.D. County Credit Union Poinsettia

Utah St. Vs. Northern Illinois

Dec. 26 @ 9:30 p.m.

ESPN

Northern Illinois

Military Bowl Presented by Northrop Grumman

Marshall vs. Maryland

Dec. 27 @ 2:30 p.m.

ESPN

Maryland

Texas

Syracuse vs. Minnesota

Dec. 27 @ 6 p.m.

ESPN

Minnesota

Fight Hunger

BYU vs. Washington

Dec. 27 @ 9:30 p.m.

ESPN

Washington

New Era Pinstripe

Rutgers vs. Notre Dame

Dec. 28 @ Noon

ESPN

Notre Dame

Belk

Cincinnati vs. North Carolina

Dec. 28 @ 3:20 p.m.

ESPN

Cincinnati

Russell Athletic

Louisville vs. Miami

Dec. 28 @ 6:45 p.m.

ESPN

Louisville

Buffalo Wild Wings

Kansas St. vs. Michigan

Dec. 28 @ 10:15 p.m.

ESPN

Michigan

Bell Helicopter Armed Forces

Middle Tennessee vs. Navy

Dec. 30 @ 11:45 a.m.

ESPN

Navy

Franklin American Mortgage Music City

Ole Miss vs. Georgia Tech

Dec. 30 @ 3:15 p.m.

ESPN

Ole Miss

Valero Alamo

Texas vs. Oregon

Dec. 30 @ 6:45 p.m.

ESPN

Oregon

National University Holiday

Texas Tech vs. Arizona St.

Dec. 30 @ 10:15 p.m.

ESPN

Arizona St.

AdvoCare V100

Boston College vs. Arizona

Dec. 31 @ 12:30 p.m.

ESPN

Boston College

Hyundai Sun

Virginia Tech vs. UCLA

Dec. 31 @ 2 p.m.

CBS

UCLA

AutoZone Liberty

Rice vs. Mississippi St.

Dec. 31 @ 4 p.m.

ESPN

Mississippi St.

Chick-fil-A

Duke vs. Texas A&M

Dec. 31 @ 8 p.m.

ESPN

Texas A&M

TaxSlayer.com Gator

Georgia vs. Nebraska

Jan. 1 @ Noon

ESPN2

Nebraska

Heart of Dallas

North Texas vs. UNLV

Jan. 1 @ Noon

ESPNU

UNLV

Capital One

Wisconsin vs. South Carolina

Jan. 1 @ 1 p.m.

ABC

Wisconsin

Outback

LSU vs. Iowa

Jan. 1 @ 1 p.m.

ESPN

LSU

Rose Bowl Game presented by VIZIO

Michigan St. vs. Stanford

Jan. 1 @ 5 p.m.

ESPN

Michigan St.

Tostitos Fiesta

Baylor vs. UCF

Jan. 1 @ 8:30 p.m.

ESPN

Baylor

Allstate Sugar

Alabama vs. Oklahoma

Jan. 2 @ 8:30 p.m.

ESPN

Alabama

Discover Orange

Clemson vs. Ohio St.

Jan. 3 @ TBD

ESPN

Clemson

AT&T Cotton

Missouri vs. Oklahoma St.

Jan. 3 @ 7:30 p.m.

FOX

Missouri

BBA Compass

Houston vs. Vanderbilt

Jan. 4 @ 1 p.m.

ESPN

Houston

GoDaddy

Arkansas St. vs. Ball St.

Jan. 5 @ 9 p.m.

ESPN

Ball St.

VIZIO BCS National Championship

Florida St. vs. Auburn

Jan. 6 @ 8:30 p.m.

ESPN

Florida St.

 

Valero Alamo Bowl



In Texas head coach Mack Brown's final game with the Longhorns, the Oregon Ducks will be looking to squash his team's hopes of sending Brown off with a victory.

Case McCoy struggled in his last game against Baylor, and he'll need to be nearly flawless against the Ducks. Texas needs to limit Oregon's opportunities to score, and turning the ball over will result in even more chances to punch the ball into the end zone.

The last thing McCoy and Co. need to do is give Marcus Mariota a short field following a takeaway. The Oregon offense is too potent to not capitalize on that field position.



Texas will also need both Johnathan Gray and Malcolm Brown to step up on the ground. Both runners amassed 700 yards this season, and both will need to remain consistent at moving the chains. The Longhorns offense can't function if it has to rely on McCoy, so having capable rushers is key.

This game will be exciting given the brevity of the situation for Texas and Oregon's potent offense, but I think the Ducks will be too much to handle.

 

Russell Athletic Bowl

In Teddy Bridgewater's final audition for NFL scouts before the combine, Louisville will face a Miami Hurricanes defense that has allowed at least 26 points in each of its last six games.

Bridgewater was spectacular this season, passing for over 3,500 yards with 28 touchdowns. Several analysts have pegged him as the No. 1 player available in the draft, but Bridgewater still isn't sure if he'll commit to the NFL just yet.

The junior quarterback could choose to forego his senior season and take his talents to the gridiron with a strong showing against Miami, though, as a big-time performance would nearly ensure his status as the No. 1 overall selection.

At the very least, it would guarantee him the opportunity of being the first quarterback taken on draft day. These sentiments alone make the game exciting to watch, as it could influence the futures of both Bridgewater and several NFL franchises.

Because Louisville has that type of talent under center, it's hard to pick against them. Miami has lost three of five, and the Cardinals will handle them easily.

 

Capital One Bowl

Wisconsin may be coming off a loss to Penn State, but their offensive attack will be too much for South Carolina to slow down in the Capital One Bowl.

Aside from quarterback Joel Stave in the air, the Badgers boast two 1,000-yard rushers in Melvin Gordon and James White. Gordon averaged 8.1 yards per carry this season en route to 1,466 yards and 12 touchdowns, while White averaged 6.4 yards per rush for 1,337 yards and 13 touchdowns.

Stopping that two-headed monster will be of the utmost importance for South Carolina and their 14th-ranked defense. Limiting their yards after contact will be key, and dropping them behind the line of scrimmage when the opportunities present themselves will go a long way in the battle for field position.

The Gamecocks also need to keep in mind that Stave can burn them through the air if he establishes the run game early, so executing right from the start should be a goal for South Carolina.

Wisconsin's run game has been too strong this season to pick against them in this matchup, though.

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